John c



(No Model.) E

J. G. WILLIAMS.

BREEGHING ATTACHMENT FOR VEHICLES. No. 312,416. Patented Feb. "17,1885.

' w E 4 R WITNESSES INVEETOE MW. V fffi i 7 BY m H ATTORNEYS.

UNTTETD STATES PATENT @rrien.

JOHN C. XVILLTAMS, OF AURORAHVI LLE, VISGONSIN.

BREECHlNG ATTACHMENT FOR VEHICLES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 312,416, datedFebruary 17,1885.

(No model) f0 all whom, it may concern Be it known that 1, JOHN G. WILLmMs, of Aurorahville, countyof \Vaushara, Wisconsin, have invented a new and Improved Breeching Attachment to Thills, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My. invention consists in the construction and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the thills of a wagon with my improved breeching attachment applied; and Figs. 2 and 3 are side and edge views, respectively, of one end of the breeching-strap.

The letters A A indicate the thills of a buggy, wagon, or other vehicle, having the connecting crossbar B, to which the whiflietree 0 is pivoted by the clip or shackle D. All these parts may have the usual or any approved construction.

Instead of making the breeching-strap as a part of the harness of the draft-animal I propose to make it separate from the harness, and connect the breeching to the thills of the vehicle, and so as to make it adjustable backward and forward, and as to height to accommodate the size of the draft-animal.

The drawings represent a preferred arrangement of parts or devices for carrying out the invention. l

The letters E E indicate a pair of standards, one for each thill-bar A. I prefer to make these standards in the inverted-V shape shown by bending a suitable metal rod at e, to form the front vertical portion or arm, E, and the rear inclined portion or brace, E The arm and brace E E have suitable foot flanges or extensions, F, which are fitted to the top faces of the thill-bars A, and are slotted lengthwise at f to receive the bolts G, by which the standards are secured to the thills.

H is the breeching-strap,which is connected suitably at each end to collars I by passing the ends h of the breeching through elongated eyes or slotsi of the collars, and back around the collar loop bars '6, and then riveting or stitching said ends h back upon the breeching-strap, as shown. The collars I may slide upon the arms Eof standards E, and nuts J, fitted to threads on the arms E and below collars I, serve to hold the breechin'g-strap at any height to which it may be adjusted, to suit the height of the horse to be hitched to the vehicle; and it is evident that by loosening the nuts of the bolts G the standards E may be shifted either forward or backwardthe slots f moving along the bolts-to accommodate the length of the animal. The standards E E may separately be bolted to the thill-bars A A, and without connection with.

each other; but I prefer to connect or tie the standards together by a strong rod orbar, K, to better support the standards by preventing them from bending or turning inward toward each other under any back stress upon the breeching.

Among the advan ages of my invention may be named the following: The tendency of the back strain on my improved breeehing is to keep the thills down, which is much more agreeable to the horse and pleasant to the eye than the lifting of the thills by the usual breeching-straps connected with the harness; and in harnessing or unharnessing the animal with my improved breeehing all that is required is to hook or unhook the traces to or from thewhiiiletree, thus saving time and avoiding accidents resulting from neglect to fasten or unfasten the usual harness breeching-straps at both sides; and with my improvement the vehicle can never run into the horse, which sometimes results from the breakage of the usual breeching-straps.

Other important advantages are that there is great liberty given the hind quarters of the animal in making turns, or avoiding ruts or obstacles in the road, as he has all the distance from one thill to the other to move sidewise, while withthe ordinary breeching on the harness the animal is constantly pinched and kept in the center of the thills while turning; and I find, also, that there is much less backward and forward motion of the vehicle on uneven roads, which is due to the instant downward pressure on the thills when the horse bears on the brceching, while on level ground the breeching is entirely free from the horse, making it much more comfortable for the animal.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. As an improved article of manufacture, a breeching attachment to thills, consisting, essentially, of the angular standard E and a sliding collar on the vertical arm of said standard, said collar being provided with an eye or loop for attachment of the strap H, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with the thills A, of the standards E, fixed thereto, the breechingstrap H, fitted by collars I to slide on the vertical arms E of the standards, and the nuts J, screwed upon the standards below the collars I, substantially as shown and described.

JOHN C. X ILLILXBISr WVitnesses:

JAMES G. BROWN, S. WV. XVALTER. 

